>> definitely super storm sandy. i would drive into a tornado any day. we're building a third vehicle. >> brian: how much would to cost right now? >> for the dom? it runs low right now. >> steve: we're going to continue the conversation with him in the after the show show. see you back here tomorrow. so long, everybody.

>> it's time for the president and democrats to get serious about the spending problem that our country has. bill: peter doocy is live, was there movement overnight? >> it sounds like things might be stuck. a senior administration official told us that president obama and john boehner had a phone wallace night and politico was reporting that the phone call was curt. they said on the call john boehner told the president to

leave the tax cuts for the rich alone. the president says he doesn't want to do that. he's going to stick with his plan to raise $1.6 billion in revenue and if republicans have something better they should be specific now. eric cantor said republicans are already going further than they did in the same spot in 2010. >> we have done our part. we have put revenues on the table, something we didn't do two years ago during the debt ceiling negotiations. >> we've seen some positive developments in the last several weeks, in terms of what republicans have been saying about the need for revenue as part of a balanced package. the president will continue to make the case that that is essential. >> reporter: so both sides saying revenue is on the table, now the fight is obviously to figure out where it's going to come from, how the government is going to make more money. democrats want it to come from increased tax rates on the rich,

republicans would prefer to make that extra money by reforming the tax code and entitlements. bill: how is the president trying to rally the public around his ideas, peter? >> reporter: in part with a hashtag. my 2k. the white house is saying if the u.s. goes off the fiscal cliff it will cost the average middle class family $2,200 a year and they want middle class social media users, twitter users who don't want that to happen to get online right now. >> today i'm asking congress to listen to the people who sent us here to serve. i'm asking americans all across the country to make your voice heard. tell members of congress what a $2,000 tax hike would mean to you. call your members of congress. right them an email. post it on their nice book walls. you can tweet it using the hashtag, my 2k. >> reporter: as you heard at the top of the show treasury

secretary timothy geithner is going to be on the hill today. one of his meetings will be with senate majority leader mitch mcconnell who just said, we are eager to hear the administration's specific plans for protecting jobs and growth by reducing the national debt, reducing washington spending and preventing a tax hike on every american taxpayer. so, bill, the two sides are talking to each other but it does sound like we are a little ways away from them coming up with anything they would send to the president's desk to sign. bill: a big lunch at the white house too. we'll talk about that in a moment. martha. martha: as these negotiations sort of hammer away in washington, 173 companies have now announced that they plan to payout their special dividends early to shareholders. that includes names like disney and walmart, costco, las vegas sands as well is in that group and it will happen interestingly

before the new year when the massive new tax hikes could kick in. stewart varney thinks this is really of note this morning. the host of varne varney & company. >> i'm going to call it a tax revolt. companies are saying, look we are not going to give extra money to the treasury this year. we'll help out our shareholders this year. we'll pay them a lot more money in dividends this calendar year so they can beat the expected tax increase that comes next year. martha, you mentioned a few tk-ps. numbers. >> 1.3 bil$1.3 billion, disney. costco, $3 billion. the buckle, $4.50 per share. there may be a lot more to

come. it is a tax revolt, martha. martha: it's such an interesting way to put it, security. they are forcing the money into private taxpayer's hands before the government can get their hands into it. the government may be putting into their calculations some of the taxes they'll make on the dividends and we know that the taxes on the dividends could be going up and that money could increase and they are leaving the government out of the picture. that has to make the government a little bit unhappy. >> i'm sure they are not happy about that. if you put the tax rate up and dividends and it goes up next year they are figuring in, okay we'll make an extra how many billion dollars dividends. this preempts this. the dividends will be paid this year so they are applying this year's tax rate which is much lower, a big deal. martha: in so many ways it seems reflective of the mode companies are in right now. they are trying to figure out how they can best sort of hang onto the money that they've

earned, distribute it to their shareholders, not necessarily expand. they are in protective mode as they wait for what is coming down as they say it that will be very painful for them from washington. >> let me give you the case there cast could he, fo coast could hecostco. they borrowed the money. $7 per share. if you own costco stock now for each share you own you'll get $7. costco borrowed that money. it's very good public relations, it's very cheap to barrow that money, costco comes out looking good, the stock goes up, not bad. martha: before i let you go the president has had a couple of high-level meetings with executives since he was reelected. is there any indication that the relationship there is any better than it was before? >> that is a very hard question, and i'm not sure i can give you a direct answer. i saw lloyd blankfien come out

of the meeting, and he would not talk about the tone of the meeting, he simply said, it looks like given the politics of the day we might get a deal. i'm not sure that has changed that much. i think business perceives the president to be antibusiness and pwaoelgt them ove beating them over the head in his second term. martha: thank you very much. we will see you coming up later. bill: fox news alert numbers out 35 minutes ago brand-new weekly jobless numbers are in. labor department reports 393,000 americans filed first time unemployment claims the government blaming super storm hurricane sandy for a big spike earlier this month. that number down a bit from that. the four-week average is well over 400,000, close to the 405,000, which is where do you not want tonight. a bit of context now on the weekly numbers, numbers from

last week went up by 6,000 to 416,000. the last 88 of 90 weekly unemployment claims were revised higher, that goes back to march of 2011. martha has more on this. martha: let's take a look at that. since december of 2007 weekly jobless claims has stayed above the 300,000 level. they spiked in 2009 at 667. weekly claims have to stay consistently below the 3,725,000 park, some say more like 350 that is shown by the yellow line here. that's where you start to see genuine economic growth sort of perk lating in the economy that would indicate that the job market is strong enough to actually bring down that overall unemployment rate. earlier this fall weekly jobless claims had dipped below that line, right before the election, and now they seem to be creeping above it, 393,000 is the number that we're hat today. it's interesting to note that we're going to get an overall

unemployment number coming out. some people think based on this number that that could go back above 8% as well. bill: we were so keane on these numbers and waiting for them to tell us what they would tell us about the economy, and how voters were thinking and feeling and how it would play out in the election. a lot of people are now saying hey man, wrist the attention on the numbers. job number one is how to maybe the economy stronger. guess who is coming to the white house for lunch? >> mr. president you're entitled as a president to your own aeu own airplane and own house but not to your own facts. bill: those are topics that will likely not come up today. martha: peanut butter and honey is mitt romney's sandwich. we'll see if they have it at the white house. how about this. could gitmo detainees be heading to your town.

the move to close guantanamo bay. why it may be a bad idea. bill: any chance republicans fold on raising tax rates? we will find out when we ask senator john f u.n. e, and conservatives say the fight is far from over. >> republicans have stood for one thing specifically, it's held them together, they are the low tax party. the other guys want to tax to match their reckless spending. if they give it up now in return for nothing obama wins and he wins big. are you receiving a payout from a legal settlement or annuity over 10 or even 20 years? call imperial structured settlements. the experts at imperial can convert your long-term payout into a lump sum of cash today. i just finished a bowl of your new light chicken pot pie soup and it's so rich and creamy...

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martha: unions are stopping work at another busy california port. this scene was last week when the workers picketed at the oakland port. now it is clerical workers at the port of los angeles and nearby long beach who are on strike as well. other unions, including the

dockworkers refuse to cross the picket lines. it has affected two cargo ships but if it continues losses could pileup quickly. they handled $273 billion in cargo last year. not a lot moving there right now. bill: power lunch at the white house, president obama having governor romney over for lunch. with all the drama and nail biting over that looming fiscal avalanche can we expect anything big to come out of it? doug schoen former adviser to bill clinton. monica crowley, fox news contributor. i it's the thing to do. you get a call. >> president obama has a pattern of inviting political opponents, business leaders to the white house for some sort of confab. what it kals end ends up being is a photo opportunity so he

looks like he's extending himself to the opposition, he's bipartisan, and he is neither of those things. bill: would you accept that invite. >> i would accept in a heartbeat. bill: monica is saying nada on this. >> i would be more optimistic on this. we are groping for bi-partisanship. if governor romney has things to share and ways to bridge the fiscal cliff this is all good. bill: we went back to the vault to figure out what they are not going to talk about. we found this first of all, okay. i want you to listen to. roll it. >> i've been in business for 25 years. i have no idea what you're talking about. i had a friend who said you don't just pick the winners and losers, you pick the losers. bill: i've been in business 25 years. i've got no idea what you're talking about. >> actually those points may come up. bill: you think so?

>> governor romney has nothing to lose, he's obviously lost the election. he can be straightforward with the president. doug, i love you and i hope you're right about this. in terms of optimism, but there is nothing in the president's history or background over the last four years that indicates any sense of compromise or conciliation or reaching out. >> he's already said he's willing now tentatively to come down on the top rate in the negotiations, and he's hinted at entitlement reform. if governor romney's plan which is a cap deductions comes up today, and they talk about using the governor's business experience, hopefully i'll be more right than you're giving me credit for. >> i hope you're correct. the president also said no movement on the tax rate. bill: listen here. i've got five boys. i'm used to people saying something that is not always true but just keep on repeating it and ultimately hoping i'll believe it. bill: so the boys will stay home. >> yes, governor romney was right to say that the president

does also have a history of misleading the american people, flat out. i don't think he's going to bring that up today during the lunch. but you never know. >> yeah i think the president has two now almost teenage daughters, one teenage one, one almost. i think he well understands what the governor was talking about. i would like to be more optimistic that they'll be able to find some common ground. the olympic experience of the governor which the president has praised. bill: streamlining government. >> isn't that all to the good? don't we want to hear what governor romney has to say and wouldn't we want president obama to embrace it and more importantly governor romney itself. bill: the record shows mondale and reagan only had a phone call after 1984. kerry and bush had no lunch only a phone call. >> they said they wish they had more contact. bill: the bromance that broke out between bush 41.

>> reagan and carter on inauguration day did not say a single word to each other. president obama has had four years to listen to those words and incorporate some of it into policy. he hasn't done it. i don't see him starting you now. >> president clinton and george h.w. bush have donnie norm must good works together. if we can be optimistic, in terms of streamlining, the fiscal cliff i think that would be a good thing. bill: what is next, martha. martha: that is something to think about for today. how about this. $2 and new two dreams coming true big time, where the winning powerball tickets were sold, i'll give you a hint, not at my convenience store or bill's. bill: what we can learn about our fate from a very, very young

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bill: here is a smash and grab caught on tape. the masked men were armed with automatic weapons and sledge hammers. this is in california, radiant unlocked safe. in and out of the store in a minute's types. look at them roll. the store's owner does not want her identity known. she is still shaken up, and obviously so. >> it was very scary. he was waving the gun all over, pointing at us, making us lay

down. they make no bones about getting what they want. and i don't think they care what they have to do to get it. bill: she is probably right about that. police say they've recovered the get away car, that is the best clue at the moment. they are still looking for the thieves. there is thought they are behind a string of similar robberies throughout the san francisco area. martha: overseas we are awaiting comments from uk comments from david cameron on a report released in the phone hacking scanned del. greg palkot joins us. >> reporter: we heard the words of the author of that report, and they are very strong. in one instance he said that some behavior by the media here in the uk was outrageous, his words. the probe was triggered into illegal hacking of the phones, celebrities, royals, regular

people at a company run by our company, news corporation. that involved 170 witnesses, including news corp. chairman rupert myrrh district attorney, and probed into issues concern the press and politicians. lord levinson was pretty damming of the media in general, he said at times it had wreaked half evacuate in the times of normal people and at times acted of its own code and as if its own code of conduct did not exist. he is now calling for a new genuinely independent selfregulatory body not influenced by the government, in his words and backed by new laws. he said the police did act wrongly at sometimes. as for politicians and their relationship with the press they said they did not act as times in the public interest. coincidentally in court today here in london two former executives of news corp.'s

newspaper division here, news international. andy coal son and rebecca brooks are facing charges of alleged corrupt payments to officials. some 80 people have been arrested so far in this scandal. again these are just opinions, these are recommendations but they come after that lengthy custody deand from a very authoritative source. we are waiting to hear what prime minister cameron says and other politicians, then we node to hear what they are going to do with this. we've got to believe there will be very strong opinions on both side getting to the very core of a lot of important issues, including freedom of speech and what the government has to say about that. back to you. martha: greg palkot in london, thank you. bill: the investigation into the eye tack in libya, where four americans were killed, that continues, searching for who was responsible. now talk is about closing the main place where we house terror suspects, where would they go? martha: a month until taxes could go up for 88% of american

house olds. republicans saying that entitlement cuts need to be part of this deal. but will everyone be on board to get a deal done? what do you think? are you willing to change the model for medicare over the long term in order to get there and these numbers, are you willing to do that in entitlement reforms in these negotiations? >> well, martha, we've always said that we will look at medicare reform and modernization. we actually took a first step towards doing that as part of the affordable care act. the congressional budget office has been very clear on that. martha: that didn't sound too promising. we are joined by john fune moments away we'll find out what republicans are willing to do. we'll be right back with "america's newsroom." -p

martha: treasury secretary tim geithner is set to meet with party leaders in less than one hour from now. negotiations continue today on this looming fiscal cliff issue that is extremely important to get solved. republicans say they are willing to put new revenues on the table but only in exchange for real entitlement reform but democrats say that can't come until way down the road. several conservatives say the gop already lost the battle on the budget. charles krauthamer though says there is still a major card that republicans have to play in this battle against the president. here's charles krauthamer.

>> he is a lame duck. he wants a successful second term. if it starts by going over the cliff, it starts with a second recession. two million unemployed and they wreck the second term. that is the leverage that republicans have over obama and they ought to use it and not cave in the face of a demand that i think is utterly unacceptable. martha: hmmm, very interesting last night pro "special report". pleased to be joined by south dakota republican john thune, chairman of the senate republican conference. good morning. >> good morning, martha. martha: what do you think about what charles krauthamer had to say on smegs report there? >> i think he is right. the president said in the post-election press conference that his number one priority would jobs and growth. we happen to agree with that. we believe the way you achieve that is keep taxes low on the people that create jobs. what the president's proposal would do is raise taxes on almost a million small businesses who employ

25% of the work force. so i do believe the president he wants a successful second term, wants a growing economy he has to have policies in place that will do that. he has to have republicans who can work with him to achieve that. right now seems like one-sided argument. this is all about tax increases which would be completely counter productive. martha: we had folks on this show yesterday and some things i read this morning on the negotiations, there's a lot who believe the gop has already given in basically on an increase in taxes that is something that is going to happen. that taxes are going to go up. you have voices like charles krauthamer saying what is the republican party about if not on holding the line on taxes and spending. so which side is it going to be? >> he is absolutely right. they are the, democrats are the big government, high tax party. we are the limited, smaller government, low-tax party and we have to stand on behalf of our principles in this debate.

it strikes me at least that this can be resolved if the president is willing to put enlightment reform on the table. republicans have been very willing to talk about revenues, particularly in the context of tax reform which is necessary to fuel economic growth. martha: but let me jump in for one second, senator, pardon me, if i may, there is piece out this morn in "politico", the president says, you know what? i won the election and what i said was everybody has got to pay their fair share. he will not negotiate on the over 250,000 increasing, seeing increase in their taxes. he said, you know what? if you can show me a way, according to this story this morning, if you can show me a way get that out of the tax reform, that's fine. we're doing tax rate hikes first. next year if you want to show me the package tax reform adding up to the same revenues and we'll look at it then. what do you say? >> what he is saying if he is concerned about growth in jobs, clearly raising taxes,

we've got lots of analysis that's been done would suggest it would cost us more than 700,000 jobs and reduce economic growth. the president will go into a second term with a bunch of policies that are going to make it very difficult for the economy to recover. i think that is something he wants to avoid. that being said as i mentioned earlier, republicans are willing to enter into a discussion with him. i hope when secretary geithner comes up today to capitol hill he will put something forward concrete. so far all we've gotten out of the administration is demand for higher taxes. they're not willing to discuss what is driving federal spending and debt that is entitlement. we're very willing to enter into that discussion to talk about tax reform. the president wants rate increases that would be counterproductive. he said two years ago in 2010 when the economy was weaker than it is today, or i should say was stronger than it is today, that tax increases at this particular time would be a bad idea for the economy. we agree with him on that.

martha: we ran in this election saying that everybody has to pay their fair share and that that means that folks on the upper end of that spectrum, i know you believe, senator, that would be a jobs killer. but look, elections have consequences. it will be the mindset from everything we're hearing and it is a no-go. what i'm asking you is are republicans willing to hold the line, say to the president, i am sorry we will never agree to a deal that involves an increase in taxes? are they? >> i think any deal that passes up here that raises taxes and raises taxes as i mentioned earlier on small businesses, martha, will not enjoy republican support. now there may be enough republicans who would vote for something like that to pass in the house of representatives, they need 218 votes. martha: then it would be done, right? >> we'll see about that. we don't know what the down tours of a final deal might look. everybody is sort of in their corners and doing their posturing.

frankly we need a plan from the president. republicans put forward on multiple occasions a plan that would reform taxes, that would reform entitlements, that gets us where we need to go. we're waiting for any ideas from the administration that would accomplish the same thing. martha: let me ask you one more question before you go. politically are you concerned that republicans might be seen as not willing to negotiate and come to the table, or are you more concerned republicans might lose their conservative credentials if they give in on tax increases?. >> i'm concerned republicans would be undermining what we're all about, that is growth and jobs. republicans believe we need policies pro-growth, that will get this economy growing and expanding again. when that happens it makes debt and deficits a lot smaller by comparison because you get more government revenue. you're right, it is absolutely a core principle of republicans we don't want taxes to go up to get more government. if we have tax reform effort that will lower the tax base, get more revenue and fuel

economic growth that is something republicans will embrace. there could be revenue generated by closure of loopholes and deductions. we can't accomplish anything by raising tax that is good good for the economy and we're very concerned about the economy. martha: it will be interesting to see what timothy geithner brings to these discussions today. we'll be reporting on it and you will be there on the hill. thank you very much. >> we'll look forward to it. thanks, martha. martha: all right. bill: there is a controversial vote set to take place today at the united nations and the u.s. is expected to vote against it. eric shawn's live at the u.n. eric, good morning to you, what is the vote about first of all and what's expected to happen? >> reporter: good morning, bill. the vote on the palestinians, a nonmember observer state. we expect to hear from palestinian authority president mahmoud abbas within the next hour. that vote coming after he turned president obama down flat. the u.s. does not want this vote. the palestinians made a move

for it last year in the security council where we have a veto. there is no u.s. veto in the 193-member general assembly where it is expected to pass overwhelmingly later this afternoon. last year the palestinians did move for the full status. it could jeopardize though, $500 million in american aid. despite that the palestinians say this is historic step to full recognition. >> what we are doing is honorable, is legal, is political, is multilateral, is democratic. so therefore once the international community expresses its will by an overwhelming support to changing our status and recognizing the state of palestine, it should be respected. >> reporter: well among those expected to vote no include the u.s., canada, germany, italy, netherlands and israel. supporting it are major nations such as france,

russia, china, spain, denmark, portugal, ireland, britain and australia expected to abstain. it will certainly have widespread implications for the fragile middle east, bill. bill: where are the israelis on this rather? what is their response, eric? >> reporter: yeah the israelis say that status could only come from direct talks with no preconditions. those peace talks have stalled because of the continued building in the west bank and continued violence we've seen in the gaza. this does come on the 65th anniversary of the partition that created the two-state solutions, something palestinians and arabs rejected for three generations. >> direct negotiations is the dna of israeli-palestinian political process. any attempt to exert external pressure on israel would serve as a setback to those who are really interested in peace. if what you're interested in

is public relations, then, this whole thing is just an exercise in futility. >> reporter: but hamas is now on board. they have rejected this until this weekend when they say they will support it, bill. bill: thank you, eric shawn watching the vote at the united nations here in new york. martha. martha: president obama is now saying he could not be prouder of ambassador susan rice but several republican senators would disagree as we have seen play out threw the course of this week. we'll talk about that with bret baier. bill: also a new effort underway to close gitmo. my next guest calls it the gold standard for holding terrorists. if that is the case, where do we go from here? we'll find out. martha: the call of the wild where a zebra and a pony were just trotting down the street. you see that pretty much every day, right, bill? in nye neighborhood we have zebras and ponies going by the strip mall in the moaning in. just saying

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bill: to a story you first heard here on the fox news channel. a new attempt underway to close down gitmo in cuba and move 170 suspected terrorists to prison facilities here in the united states? good idea? captain chuck nash, former u.s. navy captain and fox news contributor now. sir, good morning to you. >> good morning, bill. bill: we talked about this thing for 3 1/2 years now. it was the first executive order the president signed in january 2009. it is still open today. you believe gitmo is the gold standard. why? >> because originally when we put the detainees down there we fell in on top of existing infrastructure. that it was old navy infrastructure from the days of naval station guantanamo. since then there have been

purpose-built facilities, strictly and purposefully built to handle just these kinds of people in using this kind of legal structure. so this is absolutely purpose-built facility and to do it anywhere else would require modifications and the housing is the least important part of it. the legal structures and everything far outweigh the simple logistics keeping people locked up. bill: i think there is practical application for what you're saying there. senator dianne feinstein in california. she is looking at this. this is part of what she says on screen. this report according to the gao demonstrates the political will exists we could finally close guantanamo without imperiling our national security. quickly, do you agree with that? >> it depends on, can the government do something it normally doesn't do, that is think ahead and plan ahead so we don't run into these

problems? what would the department of justice say after the fact what they're already here? what would the bureau of prisons say after the fact when they're already here? if we don't come up with these rules and have it signed off where this is the where we're going to do it, before we actually make this transfer, all we're doing is setting ourselves up for failure and legal problems and challenges left and right that are going to distract from what is being done. bill: you make a great point. senator feinstein also said this. the gao report makes clear she says on screen now, makes clear numerous prisons exist inside the united states capable of holding the 166 detainees who remain in guantanamo in an environment that meets the security requirements. you're saying the same thing but it is, it is the legal basis you have to figure out now. there is this prison talked about in illinois. i'm not sure whether that is going forward. whether it is stuck in the mud at the moment. a practical application for what you're suggesting, perhaps, at some point, some day, we find those who are

responsible for killing our u.s. ambassador in benghazi, libya. if we get those people, where do we take them? >> well there's the question. what are the rules? would the department of justice say? what would the bureau of prisons say? all this still needs to be worked out. gitmo is over 10 years old. it will be 11 in january. and we're still, we still don't have those kinds of things. we could have been talking about that for years, especially, i remember when the president signed the gitmo closure order. he started signing it and somebody asked him where are we going to put these people when you close it and he stopped signing it and looked up and we have worked that out, right? it is 3 1/2 years later. it is 3 1/2 years later. we have worked that out, right? bill: you make an interesting point to our producers. apparently someone from yemen was held captive onboard a ship for two months before we figured out what to do with that person. second term, four years or no, is gitmo closed before

2016? >> what the american people need to know gitmo is closed for new arrive als. they have 166. they're trying to drive it down. i think political pressure to close gitmo may be one of the agendas. if it is we better start working now to figure out how we'll handle these people and what the legal rules are going to be and not do what the government normally does is figure out all that later when it is problematic. bill: chuck nash, good to see you today. to read more in the report what senator feinstein has said. head over to foxnews.com. there has been a lot of opposition to such a plan in the past. we'll see are with the renewed effort ends up. foxnews.com is where it is now. thanks for catherine herridge with fine reporting on that late yesterday. martha: you know who is not worried about that? bill: who is that? martha: two two people with a lot of on their minds. two lucky winners in the record powerball drawing. where they are and how much

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swithout shriners hospitals,he things i'm able to do. my life would be completely different. when i was seven, we found out i had scoliosis. everything changed when they stepped in. it was like they gave me my future back. tori's life is one of nearly a million changed by donations from people like you. send your love to the rescue. donate today. bill: you know you see a lot of things every day on the sidewalks of new york. but folks in staten island have never seen this before. that's a pony and a zebra running down the street together. it is pure love. the owner admits forgetting to close the gate when cleaning the stall. martha: i hate it when that happens. bill: the zebra is four months old. casper the pony is 15 years old. the nypd captured pair. they say they are safe at

home. martha: cast par should know better. the zebra is baby. what does he know. bill: here's the rub. by new york law he is allowed to have the thing as a pet. game warden came in said, there is -- no such thing. so i'm thinking he is headed for a bigger place. martha: running with quite a bit of purpose. i think they're on their way somewhere in particular, christmas shopping perhaps. bill: another day. martha: another day in new york. how about this? a new way to predict obesity? researchers say the key is in newborn babies. john roberts on this for us today. he is live in atlanta. good morning, john. >> reporter: martha, good morning to you. 17% of the children in the united states are obese now. it tripled in the last three decades. something needs to be done to identify them earlier. researchers at imperial college in london. they came up with a simple calculator. sounds too good to be true? perhaps but it is 80% accuracy. get the parents body mass index.

child's birth weight, number of people in the household and whether mom spokes smoke and mom's profession. parental bmi of 24. that is high side of normal. two people in the household. mom did not smoke. baby came in 8.8 pounds. mama a professional and entrepreneur. probability for obesity for that child, 2.21%. change the unemployed. the number skyrockets to 15.19%. reason why? people of lower income households tend to eat less healthy foods. much more loaded with sugar. more fast-foods and put on weight more rapidly. what happens if mom smokes? look at that scenario. bmi for parents. borderline obese. mama skilled manual worker. doesn't smoke. same baby weight. 2.15% probability that child will be obese. if mom smokes? it skyrockets to 50%. one other parameter number of people in the household. same bmi 30. number of people in the

household changes to four. although, at four, it is 12.79%. which is less if it were two. reason why? researchers aren't particularly sure. may be a greater chance for physical exercise. scientists came up with the formula looking at 4,000 people in finland over 25 years. they say that socioenvironmental factors are much more accurate predictor for genetic obesity than environmental factors were. martha: john, thank you very much. the question it brings up, what do you do about it? bill: breaking news from the hill. treasury secretary tim geithner has just arrived in harry reid's office on the senate side of the capitol building. tim geithner is the point person for negotiating the fiscal cliff,/after launch. martha: that is not tim geithner. bill: that is not. but that is. they're talking. not just harry reid he is

talking to. republican leaders on the house side too so critical of this, john boehner, eric cantor. how will these talks go? we'll follow it and let you know what is happening in two minutes when we continue. >> i'm trying not to paint us into too many boxes where i paint john boehner into a box that tells him what to do. year again and now -- i got a great new way to get deals. it's called bankamerideals, from bank of america. i choose the cash back deals in my mobile or online banking. i just use my bank of america debit or credit card when i pay. and i get as much as 15% cash back -- put into my account. this is on top of other rewards and discounts i already get. best of all -- it's free. happy holidays. [ male announcer ] introducing bankamerideals, free for online banking customers. sign in to your online banking to choose your deals today.

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1998 bombings of u.s. embassies in east africa. she was the region statel state-of-the-state liaison at the time of those attacks. >> in both cases the ambassadors begged for additional security. i asked ambassador rice what her role was. she said she would have to refresh her memory, but that she was not involved directly in turning down the request. martha: who was? right? that's one of the big questions here. chief intelligence correspondent catherine herridge is live in washington this morning with us. what are we expecting in terms of possible answers this morning from all this. catherine? >> reporter: thank you, martha and good morning. senator collins is raising a key issue whether ambassador rice has baggage beyond benghazi, especially the knowledge of the conditions and the bombings in

tanzania. the u.s. ambassadors in east africa requested more security, more help prior to the attacks and these requests were not fulfilled. at that time rice was in charge of the africa section at the state department. there is a closed door hearing before the senate homeland security committee. we are hoping to hear from the senators at that stake out you see there after the session closes. we've got about a half dozen investigations like this one going on in congress right now. this is looking specifically at physical security and requests for additional security leading up to the benghazi attack and at other diplomatic facilities worldwide. we heard from the head of that committee, senator joe lieberman. >> i know there's been a lot of focus on ambassador rice' sunday morning tv appearances. i'm sure there will be some questions about that. but i hope we can focus on what i think are the more important parts of our investigation,

which is what did our government know, and what could it have done both before the tea terrorist attacks to protect the lives of the americans there. >> reporter: we have a half dozen committees running their own investigations. on this parallel track there is a surb for a select committee to look at the benghazi issue, martha. martha: a lot of people want to see that happen. we'll see if it does. that would take bi-partisan support for that. it's not just republicans crying foul over the talking points and surrounding issues. >> reporter: these right. a leading democrat on the house intelligence committee questions why interviews with diplomatic security agents who were at the consulate and the surveillance camera video from the cans lit that showed there was no demonstration at the consulate on 9/11 when the attack happened took so long to work their way through the intelligence system. >> there are two critical pieces of information i think shed the most light on the fact that there was no protest, the

interview with the people on the ground as well as the video evidence. that took time, in some cases days, in some cases more than a week, and that accounted for a lot of the inaccurate information initially, and one of the questions that i've asked is why did it take as long as it did? >> reporter: this particular point raises the question over we had this pre 9/11 stove piping that prevented the information from getting up the chain quickly, and why so much weight was begin to these electronic interaccepts or the phone conversations, rants interviews with our own people, martha. martha: all good questions. catherine, thank you very much. >> reporter: you're welcome. bill: this is now developing in the middle east. part of the u.s. embassy in cairo is now closed. this after violent clashes cutting off access to the u.s. embassy in cairo. there are thousands back in the street and they are angry, demanding president mohammed morsi, the new president step down. steve harrigan streams live in

cairo, it is nightfall now. what do we know about the u.s. embassy, steve? >> the u.s. embassy building is really just down the block from where i'm standing here and egypt security forces have put up a 12-foot high call of cinder block to keep that alleyway safe where the embassy is. the public services section which visitors use is closed today. that part of it is closed off. the embassy itself has not been targeted but it is part of a rough taeub rough neighborhood around tahrir square where protestors are throwing rocks and police are firing teargas. two buildings were set on fire, those blazes are now out. warnings issued to all americans to avoid the downtown area over the next few days due to the unrest, bill. bill: when will the new egyptian president morsi speak, do we know that, steve? >> reporter: we expect to hear from him on national television later tonight in a taped

address. he's likely to introduce a new constitution, and that constitution could either make things better on the streets or it could inflame more protests, really depending on how hard line an islamist slant that constitution takes. we are likely to see more street protests here in egypt, both for and against the president on friday and saturday, bill. bill: something to watch not just today but in the coming days and weeks as well. steve harrigan live on the ground there in cairo. martha: so much turmoil in that area. there are also new reports of violence rocking syria today. this is brand-new video of the aftermath. look at this. four explosions went off in a suburb near the syrian capitol. at least 56 people dead in those explosions, dozens more are injured. several homes and buildings were destroyed. the blast reportedly caused by two bobby trapped cars and two other explosive devices. no group has claimed responsibility in this. syrian police say that it has the trademarks of an

al-qaida-affiliated organization. >> another alert right now on the floor of the u.s. senate. senate minority leader republican mitch mcconnell saying that raising tax rates in this economy is the last thing that the government should do in america. here is senator mcconnell just moments ago. have a listen. >> the only reason democrats are insisting on raising rates is because raising rates on the so-called rich is the holy grail of liberalism. their aim isn't job creation, they are interested in wealth destruction. bill: part of the reason why this is getting so much attention not just because the calendar has 30-some-order days before this has to be reached or we go over the cliff. timothy geithner arriving on the hill moments ago. first geithner is on the senate side then on the house side. art laugher who won the show nor

reagan with so many ideas in the 1980 is our guest in 35 minutes. we'll talk to him about it then. martha: yes we will. in the meantime how about those two winning tickets? are they in your hand? they are not in mine. well, the record powerball jackpot was won last night. one person was in missouri, the other one in arizona. no word on whether the tickets belonged to individuals or the big office-type pools who are always so agreeable when dividing things up. what did folks say they would do with all the money out there. >> really, really big house, a couple of cars, motorcycles. 64 mustang. >> lots to the church. lots of money to church to help others. >> quit my job for sure. yes. i will be out of here. i won't even tell anybody. i'll just disappear. martha: that's great. i like the 64 mustang idea myself. adam housley is live in los

angeles, so, adam for everyone in the grand canyon and show me states holding tickets right now what are the winning numbers, friend? >> before i give you those numbers it's obvious l.a. bureau didn't win. everyone is here this morning. it's unfortunate news for us. we would have shared with you, martha but it didn't come our way. martha: oh, sure. >> reporter: california doesn't have powerball. there are amazing reports of people driving from southern california about a four and a half hour drive to get to nevada. in northern california it's about a three and a half hour drive. one woman flew to portland, orga orgeron began to buy one. the powerball numbers are 5, 16, 22, 23, 29 and the powerball number is 6. people -- one ticket was sold in missouri we know that. it just came out of the missouri office of the lottery said it was sold in the kansas city area. no one has claimed that ticket n. arizona they are planning to announce in the next hour or so where that ticket was sold.

no one has claimed there. we'll tell you where they were sold but we are not exactly sure if it's one person who bought these tickets in each location or as you mentioned multiple people who bought the tickets. martha: you no, often the story doesn't turn out to go too well when people do win these, and there is a tax implication of course which will be a bit of sticker shock for anybody who brings in this big prize. what happens today in terms of all of this? >> reporter: that's a good question. we have heard all the stories over the years of people who won the hra lottery who end up up bankrupt because they can't handle the finances. we have the numbers for you in fact. the taxes are this. 35% will go to federal taxes. 4.54% will go to arizona taxes, that is much better than california. and 6% will go to missouri taxes. interesting too a couple other notes for you. one this isn't the largest lottery in u.s. history actually earlier this year the megamillions game was

$656 million. three people bought tickets that won that, that was earlier this year, and the largest in the history of the world, believe it or not was back in spain in 2011. $939million somebody won over there. martha. martha: wow, well, you know we'd lick to her a good story. if you have a good story about winning the lottery and everything turning out really well, let us know. >> reporter: i would have shared. i would have shared. martha: thank you, adam. we'll see you soon. bill: thank you, adam. if you're watching us right now you probably didn't win. you'd be out answering the phone or having a good party. martha: first thing i would do is watch "america's newsroom" if i won. bill: okay that's it. the odds of winning, space junk falling to earth and hitting one person, one in 3200. being strike by lightning once in your lifetime one in only 10,000. look out. winning a powerball jackpot, one in 175 million. martha: for those two winners they did it, right?

bill: yeah. what would you do? martha: i don't know. bill: come on. martha: i don't play. i don't like the whole concept to be honest with you. bill: you'd take care of your family. martha: well, yeah. bill: right? martha: i would do that of course. i'd buy my 64 mustang like that guy. give money to the church. bill: you could probably buy mustang. we were talking about the story moments ago about the new childhood obesity report with john roberts in atlanta, you can get a lot more on that on foxnews.com. there is a child obesity calculator for parents who want to check it out. foxnews.com. martha: new fallout and more questions about benghazi this morning that are being aired on capitol hill. meetings between lawmakers and u.n. ambassador ris susan rice. we remember that. >> we are significantly troubled by many of the answers that we got and some that we didn't get. >> the information given to the

american people was wrong. >> bottom line i'm more disturbed now than i was before. martha: that was the sentiment when they came out of those might inks. the president said he really could not be prouder of ambassador rice. bret baier will analyze where all this goes from here. bill: the numbers now 17, 17 states have said no to a major part of obama care. we will talk to the governor of one of those states about his decision, and how it could ultimately affect you if you live there, or you whether or not you live in that state. martha: did you see this. basketball brawl? kris humphries, remember him? he was in the middle of that whole thing. what is up with that? we'll be right back. [ male announcer ] when was the last time something made your jaw drop? campbell's has 24 new soups that will make it drop over, and over again. ♪ from jammin' jerk chicken, to creamy gouda bisque.

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bill: this now from the middle east out of damascus we are getting record from the "associated press" that two u.s. basin tere net monitoring

companies say that the syrian government has shut down internet service across that country. in addition to that we learned just yesterday after seeing some of the video and a helicopter being shot from the sky, that it is clear that the fighters, the insurgents now have surface to air missiles, at least some of them, perhaps as many as 40 is being reported, that can take down helicopters and jet airplanes flying in the air. that could have a significant impact on the fighting in syria. watch those two developments now out of damascus. martha: let's come back here at home now for a moment. president obama is standing by u.s. ambassador susan rice once again, yesterday he spoke to reporters right before he entered a meeting with his cabinet. >> susan rice is extraordinary, continue be prouder ever the job she's done. [applause] martha: nothing like a little

public support from your boss to make you feel better. she has definitely been in a very intense situation in recent days. these five republican senators all said that they left a meeting with susan rice this week with a lot more questions than answers. ambassador rice is under fire for her controversial benghazi comments. we remember that those happened in the days after the attack, after others had already said that it was a terrorist attack and she claimed that it was otherwise. bret baier joins us now, he's the anchor of "special report." good morning, good to have you here. martha here. >> reporter: good morning, martha. martha: what does that tell you about what is going on within the cabinet, within the decision making, the second term cabinet regarding susan rice. >> reporter: the white house was clearly signaling that they want to put rice as the nominee. that the president will name here. the president with that statement yesterday trying to shore up what has been not a great week up on capitol hill

for susan rice. you know, meeting with these republicans before you're a nominee is a little bit rare to begin with, but this charm offensive was going no where. the graham, mccain, ayotte meeting did not go well, and they are kind of leading the charge on the benghazi questions. it wasn't expected to go really great, but the next meeting with susan collins, the senator who stood by her side in her nomination for u.n. ambassador, also did not go well. and susanlly a vote that i think the white house is counting onto get confirmation. they need five republicans to side with democrats to get that nomination through, let alone any republican that could put a hold on the nomination if it's announced. so i think the white house is making a calculation now and really counting numbers before this decision is made. martha: i mean, as you point out the susan collins meeting has to

raise questions for them at the white house. the president, at least in every public way possible has shown a lot of support for her, and it real any some ways comes down to the question of whether or not he feels very emboldened by the election and believes that this benghazi thing is something that is going to go away. they have to make that calculation, because she will be grilled on these questions if she actually goes before this senate committee, no? >> reporter: they do have to think about that. they have to think about the political fallout of dealing with other things as well, getting other things across the finish line that they want to get done and working with republicans. of course the president has the wind at his back after thatee hrerbgs othat election. of course the democrats have the advantage here. there is a calculation, and awful these senators have come out and also said that they thought that senator john kerry would sale through the nomination process. now some have speculated that that's because republicans want a chance at that massachusetts senate seat. the bottom line is that the rice

nomination could be a bumpy ride, whether the white house wants to have that ride at this moment in the middle of the fiscal cliff, in the middle of everything else, i think is a calculation that they are in the process of going through. martha: it's interesting. we are sort of watching the formation of the second-term cabinet, and you see the goodbye that has come to petraeus and gates and others and you watch how this thing is coming together. we'll see this john kerry and susan rice are too on that team and perhaps hagel as well. we'll let you go and see you tonight on special report. bill: is the president sending a signal on flexibility when it comes to tax rates, or is he holding firm? remember this? >> i also believed everybody should have a fair shot, and everybody should do their their fair share and play by the rules. because these how economies are

grown. bill: can both side talk themselves into a real deal? martha: an update on the bell ringer's this holiday season. they are back on the streets but one city says they can only be there under one condition. bill: uh-ho. >> thank you so much, happy holidays. ally bank. why they have a raise your rate cd. tonight our guest, thomas sargent. nobel laureate in economics, and one of the most cited economists in the world. professor sargent, can you tell me what cd rates will be in two years? no. if he can't, no one can. that's why ally has a raise your rate cd. ally bank. your money needs an ally.

martha: here we go, folks, a basket brawl in boston at the sel celtics' game. that's kris humphries. he commits a hard foul and celtics point guard rajon rondo retaliates. two players were ejected.

brooklyn went ton to win it 95-83. off to a pretty good start. bill: new marijuana laws just passed a few weeks ago raising serious new concerns on the job front. and this goes right to the employee. dan springer is live in seattle with more on this. dan, what is happening? good morning, there. >> reporter: yeah, good morning, bill. what a buzz kill, huh? pot smokers in washington state and colorado want marijuana to be treated just like alcohol but there is obviously a huge difference. pot is still an illegal drug under federal law and the courts have upheld and employer's right to have a drug-free workplace. the issue has come up in states with medical marijuana. there was a washington supreme court ruling that said while the worker was doing a legal thing off-duty having a trace of marijuana in the system violated the company's zero tolerance drug policy. medical experts say the high from marijuana lasts two to three hours but you can still fail a drug test a full week later. business owners are worried

about getting sued and a spike in accidents. >> number one for us is safety. and we can't have anybody out there who has got a halfway hangover from pot. my guys drive big drilling rigs on these freeways. >> reporter: many companies also worry that it will be tougher to hire people because many will fail that eurbl initia that initial drug test. bill: you've heard them say they will fight for that if drug use doesn't affect performance. what can you tell bus that. >> reporter: we don't know how long marijuana affects job performance but we're going to definitely see this thing going to the courts. they've had some success, these lawyers, in dealing with workers fired after smoking medical marijuana at home. drug policy or not employers have to prove the worker was impaired on the job because of a thing called just cause, the unions say that they will win their fair share of these cases, bill and we will have to see. one thing is for sure, businesses will have to pay more in legal costs to defend these

firings. bill: changing laws, changing laws. dan spring tpher seattle. martha: what is going on in washington right now? a very big meeting is happening as we speak on capitol hill. treasury secretary timothy geithner, we watched him getting out of the car moments ago. he sits down with top congressional and senate leaders. he of course represents the president in those discussions we'll have the latest on how it's going. bill: also there is a key component to the presiden president's new healthcare law. another state is now rejecting part of obama care making the total number of states at 17. the governor of one of those states will explain his decision in minutes. having you ship my gifts couldn't be easier. well, having a ton of locations doesn't hurt. and a santa to boot!

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martha: as we speak there is a big meeting going on on capitol hill over the fiscal cliff. treasury secretary timothy geithner sitting down with the top leaders in congress and in the senate, they are discussing what needs to be done to reduce the deficit and maybe how much flexibility there could be on either side. the deal is to avoid a series of tax increases, and spending cuts that many believe would be a fiscal cliff that would kick in on january the 1st. chief congressional correspondent mike emanuel is watching it all unfold on

capitol hill. what do we know about the visit about the expectations for what might happen during it. >> reporter: martha, timothy geithner arrived here on capitol hill a short time ago to meet first with senate majority leader harry reid. we know he's having individual meetings with the top four leaders of congress. what republicans have said they want to hear, and republicans will be critical, because they need republican support to get any final fiscal cliff deal through the senate, and also through the house, they say they hope that he's coming with concrete spending cut ideas that are acceptable to the administration. one of the meetings today will be with senate republican leader mitch mcconnell who a short time ago sounded pretty fired up. >> the only reason democrats are insisting on raising rates is because raising rates on the so-called rich is the holy grail of liberalism. their aim is not job he tkraoe asian, they are interested in wealth destruction. not job creation but wealth destruction.

>> reporter: a short time ago vice president biden was out and about and he told reporters that he is optimistic about the overall fiscal cliff talks, martha. martha: we'll see. the way they speak publicly there doesn't seem to be a lot of budging on either side. we know there were pretty high profile white house meetings, but those conversations, not happening publicly right now, but are they going on behind closed doors do we think? >> reporter: we know president obama and speaker john boehner had a phone conversation last night. a source familiar with the call said it lasted more than 15 minutes. that's critical because think deal will need to be carried by the two of them, bottom line democratic leaders here on the hill will go along with the president's plan, speaker boehner needs to be able to sell it in the house, martha. martha: there was a report that there was a curt, tense conversation. now we are learning that it went on as you said, mike for 15 minutes and the men had quite a bit to talk about. we'll see where it goes. thank you, mike. >> reporter: thank you, martha. bill: the state of arizona just announcing it will not create a

state insurance exchange under the new healthcare law. that is an exchange a marketplace where people go and pick and choose what coverage they want. 17 states are refusing to set up the exchanges. that means it will be up to the federal government to do it for them. georgia governor nathan deal is one of the governors who has rejected the exchange. he is our guest live now out of atlanta. good morning to you governor, thank you for your time. >> good morning, nice to be with you. bill: you were on the record about a week ago, i'll just use your words here. we have no interest in spending our tax dollars on an exchange that is state based in name only. what do you mean by that? >> well, it appears that everything will be dictated by the federal government. the flexibility that states had asked foray pierc for for appears not to be existence in their proposals. we have sent additional questions to the secretary sebelius asking the kind of

information that we need answers to and we've received virtually none of those. there are several reasons i think why you find states rejecting it. first of all is the cost. it is an unknown figure and all of us are struggling to meet our current obligations under medicaid and to add a factor that is an unknown quantity is simply nothing that is not acceptable. bill: governor, i want to go through a series of questions here in the three minutes that we have. you know what your detractors say, they say you are just playing politics. what do you say to them? >> i say absolutely not. you know, historically the regulation of insurance has been a state function, that's why we have state insurance commissioners. we don't have a federal insurance commissioner. we will have one, of course, maybe not in name but in practicality. it is not politics, it is the cost, and the question of state control over an issue that is so important to the citizens of our states. bill: at 17 some suggest the states could climb well above 20, some people even suggesting

25 might be the number in the end. you're doing it because you think you're saving taxpayer collars i collars in your state. how much money do you think you're saving taxpayers because of this decision in. >> well it is an unknown amount. first of all we do know not know what the requirements are going to be for administrative costs. it is obviously in the millions of dollars every year and certainly something that our state budget cannot absorb. bill: are the services for the people who live in your state, will they now be worse off than perhaps somebody who is living somewhere else that actually has one of these exchanges? >> i don't see how that is the issue. if they have an insurance policy, and if all insurance policies are going to have to meet the criteria of government, then if they have a policy that is issued by state exchange or a federal exchange presumably their benefits would be the same. bill: if the federal government is slow to set up one of these

exchanges, there is a group of people who will be without insurance. just back to the quirks are they worse ofquestion. are they worse off or not because they live in georgia? >> i don't think they will be any worse off. the federal government has always said if the states do not staebt exchanges that they will do so. i think the reality is that they are not prepared to do that because they too do not know what it's going to cost. bill: i think you're right about that. based on the reporting we are getting 14 months away the federal government is a long way from making this happen. what do you believe happens to the overall law if states like georgia, and 16-plus others refuse to go along with this aspect of it? >> well, i don't know. of course that is going to be up to congress as to whether or not they come back in and try to tweak it to give states the kind of flexibility that we've all asked for. i do not see that in the short term. i think it's going to be a situation where if the federal government cannot make it work, then the practicality is going to dick state that there have to

be changes. bill: even some democrat th-s week wers were suggesting that some of this should be in negotiations under the fiscal cliff before it goes too far down the road. do you think that is likely. >> i think the fiscal cliff issues are perhaps bigger than this one in the short term. in the long term because the implementation date is 2014 it will certainly be a factor to be considered. i do not see how you absorb these costs along with the expanded medicaid rolls that the act contemplates. bill: thank you for your time. nathan deal, republican out of georgia. appreciate you sharing your opinions with us. thank you, sir. arizona now number 17, martha. martha: those talks are actually going on right now on capitol hill trying to avert this fiscal cliff. lawmakers say that what they think needs to be done is a little bit of negotiating. >> frankly we need a plan from

the president. republicans have put forward on multiple occasions a plan that would reform taxes, that would reform entitlements, that gets us where we need to go, we are still waiting for any ideas from the administration that would accomplish the same thing. martha: leadership from the president, one of the big issues on this. i is nohe is now talking about tax rates, not necessarily entitlements. former ronald reagan adviser art laugher on how he thinks this is going. bill: how do you rack up more than a hundred thousand dollars in parking fine tickets? ♪ they pay paradise, put up a parking lot. ♪ they pay paradise, put up a parking lot. ♪

bill: they are dancing and doing their things now. the bell ringer's are back. colorado springs, colorado saying its no solicitation order does not apply as long as the ringer's stay on private property when they are downtown. the city also says that the big support ever the salvation army, so the bell goes on. martha: good, good news. all right let's go back to washington now because president obama may be signaling that there is some flexibility in the battle over raising tax rates. here he is yesterday. >> i am ready and able and willing and excited to go ahead and get this issue resolved in a bipartisan fashion so that american families, american businesses have some certainty going into next year. and we can do it in a balanced and fair way, but our first job is to make sure the taxes on middle class families don't go

up. martha: okay. so president obama is also saying that he wants to raise taxes on families earning more than $250,000, but that move would only generate about $85 billion a year. that is a drop in the bucket compared to the amount of u.s. debt. and that number is about what the federal government spends in just eight days. so if he gets what he wants everybody over 250,000 pays more it's going to cover eight and a half days of the government spending amount and some would say the government spending problem. art laugher joins me now. architect of reagan tphopl i raeug reagannomics. in washington they have a lot of work to do. the question is whether or not the tax issue, whether or not the president has flexibility on that. whether we go back to the 39% or whether it would be less than that. are you seeing any light in that discussion? >> if he's willing to negotiate

about the highest rates i take that as a wonderful, wonderful sign. you know, first place, even if they raise the rates they are never going to get the money. these people know how to get around paying taxes. they hire lawyers, accountants, deferred income specialists. the estimates of 85 billion are just wrong. number two these are the job creators, martha, these are the people who hire all the other people, these are the people who spend the money, these are the people who have secondary revenues affects so you're going to lose huge amounts of money if you raise tax money aress on the highest income earners. if he's willing to be flex flexible on that i am excited and pleased, and i hope he is being sincere and if he is we hope we can get a great deal done that won't hurt the country. martha: charles kraut hammer was basically saying, look, either way you slice it you're not going to look good in some respects.

if you go to the table and compromise and give away what republicans are supposed to stand for, then who are you? and if you hold the line and then you're seen down the road as being an obstructionist and that you stood the in the way of a deal that won't be good. he said why not just go for the first option. >> what i really liked about charles comments yesterday was that he said that the one thing obama cannot afford to do is have a disastrous economy in his -- in 2013. already the economy of 2013 looks to be bad. so i think obama really does need to get a deal as well and i think if the republicans and the democrats could get a deal that is acceptable to both i would be very happy, and then obama owns the economy in 2013, and 2014 and then we'll see in the off year elections whether he can keep it. and then we'll see what happens in 2016. martha: erskine bowles made comments about how to put together a deal an basically looked at where the numbers are and he said you have to trim both sides a little bit. he said i see room if here for a

deal. do you recommend that kind of compromise, and would it need to involve, in your opinion, only bringing money into revenue through eliminating tax loopholes and not through raising rates? >> what i would like to see done, i'd like to see us lower rates and broaden the base just like the simpson-bowles has it. i would like to see the 1986 tax act then i would love to see spending reductions. you know, a low rate flat tax is not only fair, it's also efficient, it creates prosperity. it's worked every single time and that's what they should do. now how you play it politically, you know, that you have to be on the inside to understand, but i don't mind the republicans coming to a deal, as long as they don't give up their opposition to raising tax rates and a low rate flat tax, i love a low rate flat tax. martha: we'll see. the president said you should have a level playing field. >> a level tax rate too. martha: he didn't seem to be referring to that? no he wasn't. martha: thank you very much. >> thank you very much, martha.

bill: it is as american as anything one can imagine, and these three are some of its best known players in history. you'll see them in a moment. why they are on a list that is causing the great past time a whole lot of agitation.

♪ take me out to the ball game. take me out with the crowd. buy me some peanuts and cracker jacques. bill: it is a different era for seball. the hall of fame, there are 37 former ball players up for reconsideration this year for the hall. there are three that are creating quite a buzz. barry bonds, sammy soza and roger clemmons. some of the biggest names in the sport ever, they are record breakers, and all were accused at one time of using steroids. do these guys belong alongside

the likes of ty cobb, bate route and willie mays. steve phillips is cohost of a radio show. what is your position on this. >> these are three great playe players. the numbers would get them inducted in the hall of fame, there is no question about them. what we have learned so far is the writers who vote for the players to come in have made it tkhraoer if you'r clear, if you're tied to performance-enhancing drugs you're not going to get in. bill: you don't think they'll get in. >> i think she should be in. it is a museum to document the history of the game. it needs to be documented in some ways. these guys were the star of that era. in my view they should certainly get in. bill: a bit more context. when you were the general manager of the new york mets this was the steroid era, correct. >> 97 through 2003 right in the heart of the steroid era, no question about that. it was out there.

we would sit up in the box watching the games and i would think maybe that guy, maybe that guy, i thought four or five players on my team over six years were using it. what i have come to learn is probably more than half the players during this era used performance-enhancing drugs. bill: half? 75%. >> maybe. if these were the best players of that era why aren't they worthy of being in the hall of fame? bill: the point is with this list, this is the first list we've had of some of them confirmed users, others are alleged. >> right. bill: who are to be considered. so this is a bit of a different game now. >> we have precedent, we have palmero who tested positive, over 5000 hom 50500 home runs. mark mcgwire, he's a one dimensional player who is all about power and if he enhanced his performance by drugs to become more powerful you can

understand his exclusion. people say steroid users are bad guys. ty cobb wasn't a great guy, he was known to be a bigot and a racist and yet he's in the hall of fame. babe ruth didn't play against the negro league. you can argue his performance was enhanced as well because he didn't play against the best competition. >> jackie robinson, joe di maggio, they were stars in this sport. >> players have very strong opinions saying anyone who cheated should not be inducted. they should be able to say how should you in some way look at all this. what perspective should you use, it's been up to the writers. many of them have said i'll have a witness and see reports. if i have 15 years for a player to be on the ballot let me wait some time to sort this all out and maybe in a decade from now i'll be able to vote thembill: t

realize they are the writers who vote and they are purists. take a guy like pete rosa cuesed of gambling. >> he's not in. and yet there are players who are purists as well. i think there are some writers that might look at the numbers and have a little different perspective. there are a lot of people who think they should change the voting. maybe a former player should be on the committee to vote them this. maybe writers and baseball players on a committee. it's very unclear. without any guidance i think attached to performance enhancement drugs will have a very difficult time getting into the hall of fame. bill: thank you. nice to see you. martha what is next. martha: when we come back police are on the hunt for two brazen jewelry thieves after a frightening smash and grab, watch this. caught on tape. the shocking details, all the latest developments in that story. just ahead. "america's newsroom" will be

right back, folks. no, it's worse -- look, our taxes are about to go up. not the taxes on our dividends though, right? that's a big part of our retirement. oh, no, it's dividends, too. the rate on our dividends would more than double. but we depend on our dividends to help pay our bills. we worked hard to save. well, the president and congress have got to work together to stop this dividend tax hike. before it's too late.